#devil fruit!reader

Was it a devil fruit ability? He glanced around, trying to see if someone looked like they were using something to hold him. Yet there was no one looking at him, no one pointing at him or even concentrating on him.

And yet the beat of his heart grew faster and louder– ba-dum, ba-dum, ba-dum.

"Luffy!" Nami's cry snapped him out of whatever had him distracted, and he turned, seeing her glaring face from however far away she was, "Why are you just standing there?"

He didn't answer; he didn't have an answer. Luckily, she was distracted after a moment as well, eyes focused on something behind him. He turned, able to twist his body at the very least, trying to see what she had been staring at.

At first, the only thing he could see was light– soft and pale, stretching out across the ground, casting gentle shadows. Despite the evening sun still being present, it looked like moonlight was dancing into the battle. Luffy blinked, squinting his eyes to try and figure out what, or who, he was looking at. He wasn't the only one who noticed; the fighting around him quieted down, and he didn't need to look to know that people were pausing.

ba-dum

His heart lurched in his chest– the drums of liberation weren't present, not entirely, but they were close. He pushed against his chest, as if willing whatever was happening to stop– these people weren't that hard to beat.

The cause of the light stepped closer and into Luffy's view. He heard a few scattered cheers, and it took him a moment to realize they were coming from the townspeople. He didn't bother turning, eyes fixated on you.

You stepped forward, stepping forward with a soft cloud of mist forming around you. He hadn't seen you before, that much he was sure of. You stood straight, shoulders poised back as you continued walking towards the battle, steps unhurried and steady. Your hair was long, a shimmering white that was flowing behind you. The mist drifted around your legs, moving like gentle waves on the shore.

Luffy felt his breath hitch, a stutter in his chest. His attention was solely focused on you, unblinking as he stared hard. Everything about you was pulling him in– physically and emotionally pulling him forward. His fists were clenched, and his arms were trembling. Like a flip was switched deep inside him, a familiar, feral grin started growing on his face.

The ground trembled beneath him, his body stretching and twisting– muscles expanded and bones shifted. It felt like reality around him was warping for a moment.

Gear five.

A laugh broke from his chest, unrestrained and loud, loud enough to be heard by everyone present on the battlefield. He knew he'd get an earful from Nami later about doing this when it wasn't necessary, but it wasn't a conscious decision on his part.

"Yeah!" The words tumbled out with more laughter, and the sound grabbed your attention, your pale eyes breaking from the battlefield, meeting his. "Let's do this!"

He was moving once more, free and lighter than before as he zipped around. The change on their side had the enemies freezing, a few choosing to flee rather than fight. He was mowing over enemies, laughter and taunts falling just as quickly as their enemies were. His attention wasn't 100% on his fight, divided and looking back at you every few seconds.

You were ethereal– he'd heard Sanji use that word before, and it felt right to describe you as such– moving towards the fallen townspeople, crouching down by their side, and laying a hand on them. Whatever you were doing caused a light to radiate from the people, bright and white, both cold and warm– and the people you had touched sat up, faces dazed as you moved on to the next person.

You were healing them. He laughed again– you were amazing.

You were, however, so focused on healing that you failed to notice an enemy growing closer to you. The man had a double-edged sword, something that Luffy had thought was cool until he saw it aimed to strike you down. The enemy he was dealing with was launched– he wasn't sure where he threw him or how hard, nor did he care– arm stretching out faster than he'd done before, fist landing hard on the back of the man's head.

"Don't touch her!" The yell was serious, harsh, and bordering on cruel as he watched the man crumple silently, and you turn, eyes widening for a brief second, before snapping up to look at him.

For a moment, he felt dizzy, his heart loud in his chest– da-dum, ba-dum.

You nodded, quick as a thank you, before turning back to the man you'd been rushing to help. He watched you for a second, eyes glaring sharply at the fallen enemy, before he turned back, quickly knocking more people down, zipping around. The remaining enemies were scattered, and some stood too scared to fight, hands up in surrender. Robin was quick to use her powers to tie them up, hands pinned behind their backs as they were immobilized. The chaos had died down to a dull roar, and using the opportunity of knowing his crew had everything handled, he rushed over to you, floating in the air and hovering.

"You're so cool!" His voice startled you, and you turned, gaze snapping up to look at him, your mouth parting in slight shock at seeing him so close. He grinned, leaning close enough to press the tip of his nose against yours, "What's your name?"

You blinked, taking a small step back to create space between you two. The battle felt distant to him now, like a dream from days ago he was struggling to remember. You swallowed, giving him your name with a quieter voice.

"Your name's so pretty!" He landed on his feet, bouncing on his toes as he stepped into your space once more, "What were you doing?"

You weren't sure how to answer, glancing at the people you'd healed who were standing up, dusting themselves off to go help others stand, "Healing people?" It came out more like a question, the feeling of unease coursing through your chest.

"That's amazing!" His eyes held literal stars in them– a shape forming in his pupils that had your eyes narrowing slightly. Who was he exactly?

"Thanks," You could feel your ability seeping out of you, the familiar draining feeling coursing through you. Your hair was the most noticeable change, color changing back to your natural color and form. You watched as Luffy's eyes widened even more, and so did his smile.

"You're just like me!" He cried out, grabbing your hands and tugging you forward, excitement in his voice and on his face.

You stumbled, always slightly uncoordinated when you were back to normal, and lightly tugged at your hands. His grip was firm, and you had a feeling even if you pulled with all your strength, he'd still hold tight. So you did your best not to fight, sending him a small smile to hopefully placate his excitement.

"I guess so?" You glanced behind him, seeing the few remaining enemies being tied up by what seemed like floating arms. Luffy shifted, standing in front of you to have your full attention, hair still white and floating.

"What fruit did you eat? How'd you get like this? I ate the gomu-gomu no mi! I've never seen someone who can transform like I can! Gear 5 is what it's called– Nika!"

His questions came at you fast, like a constant stream of words, hands still clutching yours. "Uh. The hikari-hikari no mi? I don't know what to call this form, but some of the others say it's my Tsukuyomi model."

He looked more enamored with your words, slowly shifting to press himself forward, causing you to do what you could to lean back away from him.

"You're like my complete opposite!" He sounded thrilled, and you winced at how loud he was getting.

"It's not the flashiest ability," You explained, hoping his attention would divert away from you, "But it comes in handy during fights and stuff. I'm not a fighter, but I can heal people so long as they're still alive."

"You should join my crew!"

"I– what?"

He let go of your hands, and before you could respond, he was grabbing you in his arms, holding you bridal style as if you weighed nothing. You let out a yelp at the speed, having no choice but to grab onto his shoulders as he moved through the air quickly, coming to a stop before the rest of his crew.

"Hey, guys!" You felt frazzled, and the loudness of his yell wasn't helping, "She's going to come with us!"

The others looked confused, glancing at each other before looking back at the two of you. Once your head felt like it was no longer spinning, you bat at him, trying to squirm your way out of his arms. It didn't appear to be working, and he held you tighter, like one would hold a squirming pet.

"Luffy, who is–"

"Did you even ask–"

He was chuckling now, a childish giggle coming out of him. It was strange to see a man as powerful as him with such levels of childlike giddiness.

"Oh my," A woman's voice cut through the rest of the stammering crew, and even your attention was pulled as the taller lady, Robin, if you remembered correctly, stepped forward. She looked somewhat amused, a small smile on her face.

"It appears that you're the hikari-hikari no mi user, aren't you?" You nodded at her question, and her grin grew a bit sharper, "Do you know the history of your fruit?"

You could feel Luffy quite literally bouncing on his feet, bouncing you along with him. God would he put you down? "I only really know what I can do with it– would you please put me down– and at some point I could use that form, but I don't know the history of it or anything."

"You said your townspeople called it your Tsukuyomi model, yes?" In between trying to push yourself from Luffy's arms, you nodded, and she hummed before continuing, "In mythology, Tsukuyomi was a deity, a moon goddess. The base form of your fruit allows you to create a small ball of moonlight, and if pressed against an injury can heal them. In your Tsukuyomi form, much like our captain's Nika form, all your abilities are enhanced."

That much about your abilities you had known, but you kept your lips pressed shut. Luffy paid no mind to your continued squirming, still in his Nika form and attention focused on Robin as she spoke.

"It's said that back when devil fruits originated that the god Nika was infatuated with the goddess Tsukuyomi, a love that was described as bordering on obsession. The power associated with Tsukuyomi is said to be gentle, calm, and the complete opposite of Nika."

You blinked, feeling a faint chill brush across your skin, "That seems... a bit excessive."

Luffy seemed excited at the story Robin laid out, letting out a cheer and jumping up, taking you up with him several feet into the air. You scrambled to hold tighter to him, eyeing the ground as it seemed impossibly far from you.

"See!" He landed, hair darkening as he transformed back into his regular form, grinning at you, "You have to come with us!"

"I can't just join you!" Your yell seemed to fall on deaf ears as Luffy shifted his attention to his crew, and you started flailing even harder in his arms.

"Chopper! She can work with you in the infirmary!" His eyes were sparkling as he made decisions while ignoring you.

"Hey!"

Chopper tugged at his hat, shifting where he stood, "Uh, is that a good idea Luffy?"

"Yeah! You heard what Robin said– she can heal and stuff! Where else is she going to work?"

"Luffy, you can't just kidnap someone!" Nami stepped forward, "She has a life here! Hell, she probably has a family!"

You... didn't. But they didn't need to know that. Luffy just blinked at her, tilting his head as if he was confused.

"But you heard Robin." Nami raised an eyebrow, "Our fruits are in love or whatever!"

"That is not what she said, you idiot!" Nami pointed a finger at him, annoyance clear in her glare, "She was talking about some myth, not your actual love life!"

Luffy whined, tucking you closer as if he was afraid they'd try and snatch you from his arms. You kind of hoped one of them would. "But- but when she got on the battlefield, you saw what happened! My heart got all loud, and I could feel Gear 5 wanting to come out! I didn't mean to transform, it just happened when I saw her!"

That explanation had the crew quieting down, and the smile on Robin's face looked almost softer. "I did say it was part of mythology, Nami, not that it was untrue."

"So what– he has some sort of devil-fruit soulmate?"

Robin hummed, "In simple terms– perhaps."

Luffy grinned, directed at Nami with a teasing glint in his eyes, "See! Our fruits are in love!"

Nami just sighed, as if beginning to give up on her argument, "Okay but, still, Luffy, you can't just use that as an excuse to kidnap her," You were not a fan of how they discussed you like you weren't present, "Even if there is some deep, weird connection between you two 'cause of your fruit."

"If anything, it just means there's potential affinity," Robin continued, though for some reason, you didn't believe her words were meant to deter her captain.

"Use whatever big words you want, I don't care! She's gonna be a Straw Hat and sail with us! Hey, do you have some dream you want to accomplish?"

You just looked up at him, perplexed and puzzled and annoyed and ready to swing on this guy–

"Not... really," Was all you manage to muster, "Please. Put me down."

He finally complied, setting you on your feet, but staying so close he was practically glued to your side. You huffed. The biggest issue you were facing was that the idea of leaving and setting sail was really appealing. But he wasn't even suggesting it– he was telling you you were coming with him.

And that was pissing you off.

"Where are you planning on going?"

A few of the others looked surprised at your question, but Luffy didn't. He grinned, wide and childish and– "Wherever we want," –free.

Though time passes by a lot faster when most of the traveling is spent sleeping and 'healing' as Zoro has been ordered to do by everyone he sails with in their own way. It was annoying at first, until he actually started feeling better. And then he didn't much care what they had to say.

Or so he was able to pretend until Owleyes would come his way twice a day and demand to check his wounds and change his bandages. 

What they still had relatively limited of was medical supplies, so when she came closer to re-dress his wounds, it wasn't with rolls of gauze like he'd been treated with before. Instead, she sits by his side, and makes him hold a piece of paper the same color as her skin about two or three inches across and helps her unwind it from the unfolded flesh of her thigh just above her knee.

This was "muscle paper" different from the "bone paper" she'd tried to use to make Luffy's cage key, or "skin paper" which was the thin smooth material she turned into when she fainted. 

It was strangely textured, this muscle paper. Slightly soft and more absorbent than normal paper, but it didn't have the same stretch as a cloth gauze, so she had to stitch the bandages in place when she was satisfied with how tightly they were wrapped around his torso.

When it was on, it felt more like a plaster wrap than bandages and made it so hard to move—but whenever he complained about that she shot him a sharp look. 

Those eyes said, then don't move. And it wasn't a request.  

Today though, she sat beside him, quietly and now looking quite practiced as well, cutting him free of and then re-wrapping his body up in her paper gauze.

Looking satisfied by the way he was healing, she said as much with a smile, tracing one cooling hand around the slightly swollen wounded area. He let out a slight hiss from between his teeth and she retracted quickly, apologizing and he almost cursed when she pulled away. 

But she didn't need to apologize. He almost wished it hurt when she did that, but it felt so good he could barely contain himself. 

Now, instead of touching him, her hands were turned to paper and slipping under the curve of his back with a slight wiggling motion which was nowhere near as pleasant. Though he did have the task of slightly tugging out more paper from time-to-time when she asked him too, so that the process remained smooth. He learned through experience that if he didn't comply, the whole event took that much longer, and it already took long enough. 

Allowing his fingers this near to her skin was a dangerous game, one it didn't even seem like Owleyes knew they were playing. Let alone the skin here, on the flat expanse of her thigh, where if he let his hands drift, he could jusssst...

But he didn’t fall to temptation. She was literally made of paper. He worried if he touched her, she would just crumple under his strength. Could he even be soft enough to touch her? He feared he couldn’t. 

"More slack." She prompted in a flat voice. 

Snapping out of his brewing fantasy, he tugged the edge of the paper roll which extended out from her normal skin from a pallet of papers within her body and watched them shift around.

It was a strange picture, he had to admit, seeing her knee and the lower portion of her leg looking like something between a scroll and a book when the rest of her was still clearly flesh. 

And his mind shouldn't have so easily dropped to a filthy place, it wasn't like he was pulling it out of her inner thigh. 

That would've been too weird. 

"A little more..." She reminded him, but when he did pull again, she let out a startled, "Too mu—ohch! H-ahhhh..." which she very breathily moaned. 

Zoro's eyes went a little wide, and Owleyes was beyond mortified. 

She cleared her throat. "That-that's enough Mr. Roronoa, I'm almost done." She tried to recover, really, but her voice sounded a little shaky. 

And he just nodded. Unwilling, like she was, to acknowledge that pitchy little noise which sent his heart racing. Zoro wasn't used to this feeling. This brewing attraction that seemed to be growing rather than going away. 

If he wanted sex—and usually only when he was piss drunk—he'd find a cute enough girl at whatever bar he was squatting at, and take her and her bed for a drunken night of fun with the added benefit of sleeping under a roof that night. And when said night was over, he'd barely even remember her face. 

He'd made it a point and habit not to get attached to women, and outright avoided omegas, since he didn't stay anywhere long. He never got drunker than a woman. And he never finished in a woman—not even her mouth.

To the extent he didn't even really allow himself to fantasize about it, lest his drunken self be struck with the idea and he made a mistake that would have generational implications he wasn't ready to deal with. 

He'd never had a crush before, and there wasn't another word to describe this feeling. The closest thing he had was Kunia--and though he'd been close with her, they were so young he could now box his feeling for her cleanly into "admiration" and now "dedication" to their shared dream.

Zoro'd thought the term crush was childish and stupid for a long time, but now he'd experienced it, he understood.

When he looked at her, it did feel like his heart was being crushed. Like a single look could either liberate him from this oppressive spark of desire to make it a flame, or snuff it out. And as much as it made his insides twist around more than the knife wound had, he also didn't want it to end. 

He wondered, in a distant way, if she could feel the weight of these thoughts when he stared at her. This needling lingering desire was a torment, he decided. Its own torture.

Frosting and frankincense lingered everywhere on their little boats, stronger than any other to him. It slipped into his dreams sometimes, whispering softly spoken sweet nothings in his ear and he'd wake up hard, certain that he'd heard her voice. 

But upon waking, he was always alone.

When she was done tending to him, she asked him if he was comfortable and when he responded affirmatively, she was quick to stand up and put some distance between them. That made Zoro's mouth tick down into a frown.

As he watched her settle down on the opposite side of the boat though, he could still see the faintest traces of embarrassment in her expression and was oddly satisfied by the sight.  

Though it makes his alpha growl—her distance that is, and how he forces himself to look away. He didn’t even get to express his secret satisfaction at being cared for by the (not his) omega with a look. Nami was always quick to catch him staring. Even though she didn’t seem to always be able to see her, she could see when Zoro started to hyper fixate, and when she did it always came with some kind of teasing word he didn’t want to hear. 

This is why he stayed away from omegas. This overthinking was driving him nuts.

With the weather calm and the sea at ease, they float on without much issue as the East Blue currents guide them forward. He relaxes into a nap that passes the hours by, and when he wakes up, it's to the sounds of Nami and Luffy discussing something. 

Based on the map, Nami was sure they'd hit land within the next two or three days, maybe sooner, which meant it was time to plan.

Or... that's what Nami was trying to do. 

"I'm asking how exactly do you expect to get to the Grand Line like this?"

Luffy didn't seem to understand the question. "Well..." He considers her words, "We could use more meat supplies." He agrees.

"No, I'm not talking about food." She huffs. 

Fully awake now, Zoro decided to jump in. 

"And we don't have any rum, or sake, or ale, or mead, or even grog." Zoro counted out on his fingers, snickering when Nami snapped at him.

He was feeling much better, able now to be stretched out with his legs loosely crossed in front of him and his arms up behind his head, so he could use his fingers as a cushion between his skull and the wood railing. 

"No, I'm not talking about drinks or supplies!" 

"Ms. Nami is right. We should be thankful the weather's been so nice. We'd be blown apart by a sturdy wind, let alone a storm." Owleyes agrees. Though she's playing what must be the ninetieth game of speed run solitaire, she doesn't even look up from her laid out cards. "The Grand Line is the most dangerous ocean water in the world, and we don't even have an anchor."  

One thing that has not changed over the last few weeks is how Nami jumps with fright when she remembers that there is an omega on deck with them. Though she does try to hide how spooked she is better, it's no use. It's like the moment her eyes drift away, the other girl disappears completely, even from recent memory. 

It's a strange ability, that for one reason or another does not work on either Luffy or Zoro, but did on most everybody else. Apparently, Owleyes insists that she's been this way even before eating the paper-paper fruit and she had no idea where it came from.

He would never admit aloud that his alpha liked it about her though. There was a certain primal satisfaction in knowing he was one of few that could even see her, let alone scent her…

"Y-es!" Nami stutters, "Exactly, (y/n)! We need a better ship. As it is we’ll probably sink before we even get there!" 

"Oh, well, if you say it like that." Luffy concedes, "Then what do we do?"

"We could sail right on to Lougetown and see if we can steal a boat up there. Not to mention, we need to go that way anyway based on Buggy's map. But that's pretty far. There's an island just due a little north east of here that I noticed. It should have a village, so maybe it has a port too." Nami pointed at the map, but the little pictures on there only meant something to her, "I think we should go there first." 

"Alright!" Luffy stands up, one foot on the helm of their scooter and points onward. "It's a plan!" 

"So, we'll look for a better boat..." Nami continues...

"And eat some meat!" Luffy finishes and this time she just groans.

X...X...X

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To call the first week of their journey 'long' would have been to underestimate the difficulty by miles. What he took responsibility for first, as the only capable alpha on the crew, was protecting the omega. That much he could tell himself was fine—only because it was his duty. That was enough to quiet the voice of his hind, which since seeing her hadn't allowed him any rest until he'd come to this compromise. 

It was just the right thing to do. Nothing more.

Though they all set out as inexperienced sailors, she was obviously ill suited for life at sea. At the very least he could make sure she didn't sink into it, since Luffy was fool enough to let her along. Honestly, he'd expected her to be little more than dead weight. Nice smelling dead weight which made being adrift at sea with Luffy less unbearable of an absurdity, but nonetheless mostly useless.  

Firstly, she was an omega. She wasn't strong in any sense of the word. She couldn't lift much, admitted she couldn't protect herself, and could hardly tug the rope hard enough to turn the sail. 

Omegas in general were probably better suited for land than sea. One, as far as Zoro knew, they were healthiest living in a stable territory and not running all over the world. Two, they were emotional and he didn’t want to deal with someone who couldn’t keep up with the stress of seafaring. Three, they had their heats. And while an alpha could work through a rut, heat made an omega practically useless and would distract anyone else with a nose all the while which would only be dangerous for them, along with everyone else on the ship. 

Those three reasons were good enough to leave her on land, Zoro thought. And within a few days, Zoro found out she fit all those categories. She seemed uneasy on the dingy—though they were all uneasy on the dingy, since it was so small. And her scent was already a distraction to him heat or not, which he grumbled to himself about. 

Not to mention that when she was overwhelmed by any strong emotion, she also had a tendency of fainting. And since she ate the paper-paper fruit, fainting included her entire body collapsing into a single sheet of paper which would drift to the deck with a comedic swaying. But however funny that was, laughter stopped when the wind threatened to take her into the air like a kite and drop her into the ocean. 

Having to snap her body out of the air and gingerly hold her down until her mass bounced back only highlighted her frailty. He’d expected her to begin begging to be let off at the next island and he’d never have to see her again. 

Yet, in the face of hunger she was the last to complain and the first to cut her rations smaller to share with him and Luffy. That kind of self-sacrifice (especially when she did it for him) made the hind in him preen. Though Luffy more often than not snapped up Zoro's portion before he could eat it. It didn't matter that he'd snap and call Luffy a hundred names, because Luffy would just smile his signature shit-eating grin. And that would just leave Zoro grumbling alongside his empty stomach. 

Yet, he didn’t forget. 

He couldn’t not notice that she was watchful too, and always on alert. Even when she wasn't on watch, she was still on look out, and every day she earned her totem a little more. And when she first turned her head all the way around to survey the ocean, he'd nearly fallen out of the dinky in shock. By now he'd gotten used to it—and he would never never admit he’d done that. 

While they were lost, she looked for land. And somehow remained as optimistic as Luffy when days passed with no sign of life as far as the eye could see. 

Though Zoro couldn't help but point out the ridiculousness of their situation, loudly and snappishly as the hunger set in and their fruit supply evaporated. Had he not been so fresh off the high of feeling full and free after being rescued from the pike, he would have cared more about where they were going, with who, and how. But by the time it all became an obvious problem; it was too late to do anything more than complain.

And as much as he wanted to complain about her too, the words would stick on his dry throat. 

He’d cough. He’d splutter. Something in him choked it down, so he was stuck with these feelings. He noticed things (he couldn’t miss them if he tried!) but tried not to look often. Though after they were settled into their dingy, there was nothing to do most of the time except stare out at the open ocean and watch seagulls dive in the water. So, he watched her form the corner of his eyes, and pretended like he didn’t.

Zoro'd always admired birds. Their entire bodies were like a weapon, and they lived free as the wind they sailed on. Every bird had three potentials for attack, beaks for striking and their talons for slashing, so of course he appreciated their ferocity. Even the smallest bird had the potential in it to utilize the ultimate three-prong fighting style. 

The more he grew to know his new crew mate, the more the description owlish seemed to fit. She had big saucer eyes that he'd noticed the first time he'd seen her. But what he came to learn was that when she surveyed a room, she did so with a slow, measured movement. Gliding her head back and forth like he'd watched owls do when he was child, training too early in the morning out in the forest behind the dojo. 

Or when she tilted her head to the side to focus all her attention, it was in a funny owl-like way. And when she blinked it was always slowly, with a shuttering kind of motion that stopped with a click before they went wide again. She kept watch the best of any of them too, because he had the habit of falling asleep on his shift and Luffy was too distractible to stay still for any length of time. 

That's why he'd taken to calling her Owleyes. 

Maybe when he first uttered that nickname, he should have realized there was something special brewing between them. He could have picked any name to call her. Even if this one suited her, it was still a sign. 

Not only had he admired birds all his life, the last three years on the sea he'd spent chasing after the ghost of the Hawkeyed Man, who was the current uncontested best swordsman in the world. Of course, he was only uncontested because no one had bothered to duel him in the last decade. Nonetheless his skills were renowned. Zoro was intent on crossing blades with the man and proving himself to be the best swordsman alive. 

How had he not noticed that in a single afternoon a new bird had perched itself up on the throne which was his highest aspiration? The first was huge and terrifying. A hawk of legends with piercing eyes that could slice a mountain in half with a sharp glare. 

And now another, comparatively miniscule in size, hopped out from its shadow. A tiny fluffy thing really, with big curious eyes watching him oh-so carefully and he had a burning need to not flinch from its attention lest it fly away as quickly as it appeared. 

Yes, he was smitten right when he saw her. 

If he'd admitted that to himself then he might have been saved a good deal of trouble. But Roronoa Zoro was not a well-known swordsman because he avoided trouble, or even tried to prevent it. He was renowned because he often crossed paths with trouble, encouraged it even, and then beat it to a bloody pulp. 

Troubles of the heart, however, were a completely different set of enemies than the kind he was used to. A type he had no idea how to approach. He felt tempted in the worst way, like she was born to destroy his discipline and he refused to lose it. And as he considered his predicament under the unrelenting gaze of sun, he remembered an adage he'd overheard in a bar a few years back. 

It was a story about the making of man from an old islander legend. The body was made of mud, given life by the sea, and given spirit by the sun. But as the sun rises and sets, man's nature was also given two sides, likened by the old drunken men who'd relayed this story, to wolves.

One was the obedient, learned wolf of the day, which could be taught many tricks and behaved to the expectations of others. The second wolf was wild, the embodiment of the animal nature and all its savagery which hides until nighttime. It was the soul of man, with these two wolves always by his side, that decided which aspect of his nature to feed. 

The obedient wolf, or the wild one. 

As much as he tried to starve it, a desire was growing in him. And when he dreamed of the relief her loving touch might offer him, the wild wolf feasted. 

This was not to be misunderstood, however. 

The obedient wolf was no less enraptured by the honey of what could be, even if it didn't want to utterly devour her piece by piece in an ugly, selfish way. He was not a man easily tamed and even the so-called domesticated side of his nature was stubborn and mulish. But for her, he would turn belly up and eager for whatever of her attention he could steal for himself, though he'd die before admitting it. 

And honestly, if they didn't find food soon, maybe they would die and he'd never have to acknowledge it. That might just be for the better anyway…

X...X...X

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You were given some free time, holding a champagne flute, still entirely full as you wandered slowly. You were on the look out, as was your job.

Targets, is what you called them.

Future business partners is how Damarias’s referred to them.

You jolted slightly, a firm grip on your bicep startling you from your thoughts. Damarias was next to you, a well practiced, calm look on his face. To those near you the way he shifted to hold your arm may appear affectionate, but you knew it was a reminder.

He leaned down slightly, brushing your hair away from your ear. “It’s your time, my dear. Convince them I’m worth their while.”

That was all you were told. It was all you needed to hear, really. You attended these parties for one of two reasons— to be seen as his beautiful song bird, and to convince the richest and most worthwhile people to pledge their loyalty to Lord Damarias.

You stepped away from him, your movements trained. Poised. Elegant. You were told once you appeared to float when you move, rather than walk.

You easily stepped into conversations, laughing when appropriate, the same jokes you’d heard time and time again. You nodded along to the stupid business jargon explained your way, feigning interest in their every word. It took a few sweet sentences to convince them that investing in Damarias’ and what he stood for was in their best interest. Truly, you barely needed to influence any of your power into your speech.

Spineless men.

You were making good progress, and you knew that because of that you could afford a break. Stepping back, you were able to grab a glass of wine— dark red. With your back turned to most of the patrons, you grimaced. Why couldn’t they have some water here too?

With a sigh, you sipped it, ignoring the taste lingering in your mouth. Better this than nothing, you mused to yourself.

The party was in full swing, music pouring out of the open windows. The food was being replenished, guests had all arrived, stuffy suits and shimmering dresses.

You enjoyed the downtime you earned yourself on occasion, glancing to where Damarias was talking with some of your previous targets. He was grinning, large and ugly on his round head. Huffing into your wine, you took another sip, watching other patrons around. Even the pirates that he’d convinced to attend seemed to be enjoying themselves.

As your eyes scanned, it didn’t take long before your attention sharpened. A boy, he didn’t look much older than you, was stood at the food table. While that itself wasn’t super eye catching, the way he shoveled food into his mouth was.

It was almost… disturbing to watch.

“What is he a snake?” You muttered, chuckling quietly at your own stupid joke.

You shifted where you were, maneuvering yourself to stand closer as a few others joined him where he stood.

“Luffy, slow down!” A red haired women hissed, sharp nails moving to pinch the man’s ear.

“But’s it’s all free!” This Luffy whined, cheeks puffed out with the amount of food he was eating.

They began to bicker, appearing to be trying to keep their voices down. It wasn’t working, and you couldn’t help but snort into your drink. A call of your name startled you, and you had years of etiquette training to thank for not physically jumping. You turned, a smile on your face as you greeted some other guests, old businessmen you’d convinced three years ago to associate with Damarias.

“You’re gonna get us caught!” A well placed smack to the back of Luffy’s head had him whining, childish and loud.

Usopp looked nervous, glancing around like every guest around them were seconds from jumping them, “What do you think they’ll do to us if we are caught?”

Robin hummed, and Usopp regretted asking when she opened her mouth to answer. “No no no, forget I asked!”

Sanji rolled his eyes, fingers playing with his unlit cigarette. “Let him enjoy the food, a party like this plans for people to gorge themselves.”

He was watching the crowds, eyes nearly forming into hearts as he watched all the women in beautiful dresses mingling. It didn’t take long, however, for his gaze to fall on you.

Your dress, for starters, stood out. While everyone— sans them— abided by some dress code of gold and black, you wore a beautiful shade of blue. Your dress complimented your figure in a way that made him think it was almost part of your skin. Stunning was only one word to describe how you appeared, and it seemed too weak to do you justice.

However, once he stopped taking note of your physical appearance, he was quick to notice how you stood. To all those surrounding you, you seemed comfortable, relaxed. But he recognized the way you stood almost too intimately. The posture was trained, the smile on your face fake, your laughs far too perfectly timed.

His attention on you didn’t go unnoticed.

“Seems like we’ve discovered the lord of the estate’s songbird.” Robin’s voice was smooth as she came to stand next to him, her own plate of food in her hands.

“Songbird?” He turned a questioning gaze to her, but she only hummed in response, not taking her eyes off of you.

Turning back, he paid attention to the bigger picture around you. You were talking with a group of people, a group who appeared like merchants. As much as the older men seemed to be leading the conversation, it was hard to ignore how every time you spoke their gazes turned fuzzy, pausing and stumbling over their words before they smiled; large, happy, and almost empty.

You were controlling the conversation, and they were none the wiser.

“If my hypothesis is true— she’s consumed a devil fruit.” Robin continued.

“You think so?” Usopp had shifted to stand with them, appearing to do his best to ignore Nami and Luffy, “Just from watching her talk?”

He made a noise of surprise when your gaze turned, catching his eye. You smiled at the men you had been talking to, watching as they wandered off, before turning back to him and the rest of the group, making your way over towards them.

There was something off about that group, but you couldn’t put your finger on it. You made your way over, laughing to yourself at the way one of the men squirmed under your gaze.

“Good evening,” You smiled, eyes flitting around the group as the rest wandered over, “I hope you all are enjoying yourselves.”

The blonde was the first to respond, voice light and cheerful as he greeted you, “The evening’s gotten better with your presence, beautiful,” You offered your hand out, and he was quick to take it, pressing a kiss against your knuckles.

You smiled— an empty, automatic response, “You flatter me.”

The one you had watched earlier, Luffy, laughed, holding a plate piled high with food, “What are you doing, Sanji?” He was laughing some, voice cheerful.

The blonde one— Sanji— looked annoyed, eyebrow twitching as he turned to Luffy, “Greeting a beautiful lady the way she deserves to be greeted.”

You let your hand fall back to your side, “And you are?”

You had overheard his name, but you kept that to yourself. It wasn’t polite, after all. Luffy grinned, and you internally winced at the meat stuck between his teeth.

“I’m Money D. Luffy, and I’m gonna be king of the pirates!”

Oh. Oh. That’s who they were— the Strawhat Pirates. You glanced around the group, schooling the recognition that was dawning on you.

Captain Luffy. Vinsmoke Sanji. Nami. Roronoa Zoro. God Usopp. Nico Robin. There were others, but a quick glance through the group let you know they weren’t there.

Your stomach twisted.

You know for a fact that Damarias had not invited them. They weren’t the same as the other pirates he tended to associate with, so he had no reason to have them attend.

You just smiled, eyebrows raised, “That’s quite the goal.”

“Yup!” He grinned, “Hey— did you eat a devil fruit? Robin said she thinks you did. What can you do?”

You stiffened, it wasn’t common knowledge that you had eaten a devil fruit. As far as you know, there had been five people, including yourself and Damarias, who knew. One of the five was dead, and the other two had been forced into silence.

“I just work alongside Lord Damarias,” You spoke carefully, trying to avoid answering the question without raising suspicion, “I attend parties to scope out who would be good business partners for him, that’s all.”

The swordsman, Zoro, snorted. He’d been rather silent so far, “Seemed more than just scoping out earlier.”

“I beg your pardon?”

“Who’s this lord?” Luffy stepped forward, eyes gleaming, “Is he a god? Is he strong?”

Zoro looked mildly annoyed at having been physically shoved aside by his captain, but said nothing. You blinked, he was so close you felt the edge of his strawhat brush against your forehead.

“Lord Damarias,” You spoke slowly, “This is his estate. You’re at one of his parties.”

“Right,” God Usopp chuckled nervously, “We knew that. He invited us, beautiful bird he sent out with the invite.”

You nodded slowly, “Right.”

Before you or any of the crew could speak, a sharp voice called out, a bark of your name. Your posture changed instantly, standing up straighter.

“My dear,” Damarias was next to you, the familiar strong hold on your arm.

His suit was the same shade of blue as your dress, you were set to be matching. He held a wine glass in his other hand, graying hair styled back and neat.

“You appear to be neglecting your duties, my dove,” He spoke smoothly, eyeing the crew, “These guests don’t appear to be interested in holding conversations regarding… business proposals.”

Luffy took a bite on one of the turkey legs stacked on his plate, “Nope!”

You could tell Damarias’ was barely holding in his distaste.

“My apologies,” You bowed your head, “I was held up in conversation and lost track of time. I’ll return.”

Damarias nodded, satisfied with your response. The grip on your arm was gone, the hand coming up to tuck a strand of your hair behind your ear. The touch was light, but the weight behind it felt like your chest was being crushed under several tons. The necklace suddenly felt tighter where it rested near your throat.

“If her duties are to find you people good for business, then I’d say she hasn’t been,” Nami spoke, her voice icy as he stared Damarias down, “Don’t be so quick to dismiss us.”

Damarias paused where he stood, turning to her, his hand dropping from you, “I beg your pardon?”

“I highly doubt you have no clue who we are,” She continued, her voice strong, arms crossed, “If anything you should be grateful she’s been such delightful company to us.”

There was silence, and you could feel and hear your heart hammering in your chest. In those seconds your mask slipped, eyes wide and fearful as you stared at Nami. Damarias didn’t notice, but the others did.

Finally, a laugh. “Of course, I do apologize,” He turned towards Nami, and the shift where he stood snapped you back into the present, your expression shifting into neutral.

“Forgive me, but see she’s— she’s family to me. I feel rather protective when she’s around pirates with such bounties as you all have.”

Family. Yeah, sure. The word coming from him made your stomach roll. You smiled though, always smile, always agree.

“She doesn’t seem very happy.”

Luffy’s sentence felt like a punch to the gut. It didn’t come out accusatorially, not harsh or biting. He said it like it was a casual conversation piece, eyes never leaving your face though his words were directed to Damarias.

You made eye contact with him, unable to look away. He was looking at you in a way that made you feel vulnerable, uncomfortable in a way you hadn’t been in years. You could feel Damarias tense next to you, but it felt like he was miles away. Luffy tilted his head, almost like was asking you— are you happy?

No, and you hadn’t been for a very long time.

He seemed to understand that, his gaze finally shifting from you to Damarias, and you felt like you could breathe again.

“You should let her leave.”

Never-mind.

𝐌𝐞𝐫𝐮 𝐌𝐞𝐫𝐮 𝐧𝐨 𝐌𝐢; 𝐒𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐧-𝐒𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐧 𝐅𝐫𝐮𝐢𝐭 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐰 𝐇𝐚𝐭𝐬 𝐱 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫 (𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐜, 𝐬𝐨 𝐟𝐚𝐫)

𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬, 𝐏𝐭. 𝟐

You glanced over, heart stuttering in your chest as you made eye contact with one Monkey D. Luffy. He was eating, looking back at you rather curiously. What— What were the strawhat pirates doing here? Kurozawa continued to speak, and you broke the staring contest that was going on between you and the pirate captain.

Chapter One (Re-Mastered)

“Forgive me, but see she’s— she’s family to me. I feel rather protective when she’s around pirates with such bounties as you all have.” Family. Yeah, sure. The word coming from him made your stomach roll. You smiled though, always smile, always agree. “She doesn’t seem very happy.” Luffy’s sentence felt like a punch to the gut. It didn’t come out accusatorially, not harsh or biting. He said it like it was a casual conversation piece, eyes never leaving your face though his words were directed to Damarias.

If You Thought It Was Real Sanji x Reader (Yandere!Sanji, (platonic) Yandere!Strawhats) Your jobs were typical: scout, seduce, steal. Berri, artifacts, maps, books, you name it, and you've stolen it. This job was supposed to be easy: Black-leg Sanji was a notorious ladies' man, gaining his trust and access to his ship was easy. What wasn't easy was escaping him and his crew. You were Sanji's, which meant you were theirs. Taglist

AO3 Version

Requests:

Scenes from Before

First Meeting

Future Scenarios

Chapters:

Was he stupidly brave or just plain stupid? Despite the easy-going smile being present, Lord Damarias was fighting to keep his energy neutral. Too many powerful guests were around for him to blow a fuse, and you could practically hear his teeth grinding.

Nami elbowed Luffy rather harshly, hissing his name under her breath. Her captain, though wincing from the blow, didn't let her aggression deter him from continuing.

"She doesn't like working for you; I wouldn't either. The food's good, but it's nothing like what Sanji makes! Plus, it smells like smoke in here," He made a disgusted face, gesturing towards the patrons standing around with lit cigarettes and cigars between their fingers, "Not even Sanji smokes this much!"

"Watch it, Luffy," Sanji shook his head, not sounding annoyed in the slightest as he moved to stand closer to Luffy's side, mirroring the way Zoro was standing on Luffy's other side.

"Why keep her here if she's not happy? Hey, why are you still here if you're not happy? Why not just leave?"

It was very rare that you found yourself stunned, let alone stunned enough not to have a response. The crew that was present was looking at you, as if waiting for a response. Lord Damarias' face was beginning to resemble a ripened tomato, and in a moment of panic, you tried doing what you'd done thousands of times before.

"I think it's best if you and your crew leave, Mr. Luffy." You could feel the familiar tingle in your throat, keeping your voice calm and even, "If you're not here to discuss business, then you have no reason to stay."

You had more often than not used your ability to convince rowdy, drunk men to leave before they embarrassed Lord Damarias; a simple suggestion, implanted in their minds, had them stumbling home. It should have been simple enough to get the crew to leave quietly, perhaps even apologize for their words. Instead—

"Nah," Luffy shook his head, "I wanna eat more food!"

"I beg your pardon?" The mask was starting to slip, Lord Damarias' voice hiking up an octave as he witnessed what you had just seen; your ability didn't affect him, or any of them.

You were truly beginning to believe that Monkey D. Luffy, one of the youngest pirate captains of the New World, someone who has defeated warlords, yonkos, and other powerful people… was an idiot.

He blinked at Lord Damarias, head tilting like he was confused, "I know I said the food's not as good as Sanji's, but food is food! So I wanna eat more! Plus, I wanna talk to her more."

He pointed at you, and you felt your heart beat pick up, sweat building on your palms.

"You have no reason to speak with her, Strawhat."

"You don't get to have control over who a beautiful woman speaks to, and who she doesn't," Sanji cut in, voice harsher as he spoke than before, and the shift all around was almost electrifying.

"I—"

"Lord Damarias," You spoke quickly, knowing he was moments away from exploding and ruining the night, it wouldn't be the first time it's happened, "Let's just get security to escort them out. We've wasted—"

"Time has been wasted because you failed to do the one thing I asked of you," Spit flew from his mouth, speckles hitting you in the face as his fury turned towards you, "Don't you dare tell me how I'm to host my own party!"

He was nearly shouting now, and the few people who had turned to watch had grown. Nearly everyone was twisting or turning to look at where you all stood. You fought to stay calm— it would be so easy to use your ability on him right now, but the consequences you'd face later never made it worth it.

You stood tall regardless of the panic flaring inside. Years of living with him trained you for moments such as this, but it was still hard to deny the fear you felt. Your stomach twisted, but you stayed calm.

"I apologize, that isn't what I mean. I was merely suggesting—"

You should have kept your mouth shut. You should have just let him say what he wanted to say to the Strawhats. You knew what his temper was like, you knew, but you kept speaking anyway.

You heard the smack before you felt it, the sharp crack echoing through the ballroom before the pain registered in your mind. It was hot and jarring, and you staggered away from where you had been standing, palm pressed against your reddening skin. This wasn't the first time he'd ever struck you, but the frequency of it happening in public had lessened so much that it came as a shock to you.

"Hey!"

Someone steadied you, the warmth of a body behind you as gentle hands rested on your arms. It took you a moment to process that the pirate crew had moved quickly. Sanji had been the one to move to you, steadying you on your feet. He looked concerned, but you could see simmering anger in his one visible eye. Zoro had drawn one of his swords, only one, and the thought that the swordsman who was known for his three sword style only considered Lord Damarias threatening enough to warrant one of them was somewhat entertaining.

"You said she was like your family," Luffy was standing as close to Lord Damarias as he could be; there was nearly no space between the two, "You don't hit your family."

Lord Damarias sneered, dropping any and all pretenses from earlier, "How I deal with my property is of no concern to you, pirates," He spat the last word out like it was venom in his mouth.

"She's not property, and she's not yours."

Watching these strangers stand up for you so intensely, so quickly, had you feeling a way you hadn't in a very long time. Your eyes, already teary from the slap, were burning now, and you had to bite your bottom lip to keep it from trembling. There was no doubt that Sanji could feel you shaking from where he held you.

"We are not property!" The door slammed shut, and the few paintings that hung on the way rattled ominously.

You blinked, blearily, as you tried to wake up entirely. The bedroom was still dark, the fire in the fireplace having dimmed down to sparks and embers. The bed dipped near you, and you sat up, pushing the blankets off of you.

"What happened?"

"Nothing. Nothing, just…" You felt a warm palm press against your face, gently swiping your hair out of your face, her thumbs gently brushing against your cheekbones, "Just go back to sleep, okay?"

"She is mine, she's my songbird, she's my prize, she's- she's mine!" He sounded like a toddler screaming about his favorite toy— and wasn't that just an accurate portrayal?

Murmers were starting up in the crowd, and you watched as realization dawned over Lord Damarias' face. This wasn't a private spectacle; in his fit of rage, he must have forgotten the party he was hosting. The now silent party, where his guests were looking at him with shock and disgust. He scoffed, taking a step back from Luffy.

"Apologies to my invited guests, I appear to be harboring some stowaways. Guards, if you could?" His booming voice was once again calm, and you could hear swords being drawn as the security began moving upon command.

"You- you all should leave," You whispered, doing your best to make sure you weren't heard by anyone other than Sanji, who you turned to face, "This isn't worth the trouble."

The anger on his face was still visible, but he softened for a moment, brushing a stray piece of hair from your face, his palm warm and so familiar you felt your nose begin to burn, "It's no trouble beating people like this in a fight, and even if it was. You strike me as someone who is worth the trouble, my dear."

Once he leapt over the railing of the circus tent style ship, Zoro accessed the situation on deck as quickly as he could. A slight but busty red-headed woman was surrounded by a bunch of hearty pirates wielding a variety of melee weapons both sharp and blunt. They also look ready to kill her. She's scooting backwards towards a cannon with a lit fuse, looking between her assailants and the cannon with a torn expression. For some reason, he was fairly sure this must have been the woman the castaways had encountered.

After a look of indecision she dives towards the cannon and Zoro stepped in just in time to fend off the first two pirates who moved to attack her. Whoever she was, she'd just saved Luffy from the pitiful fate of getting hit by a town-capsizing cannon, so for now Zoro ticked her as 'ally' in his mind. The pirates were pitifully under-skilled and so not difficult to push off, disarm, or rendered unconscious in a flurry of blows that lasted less than a minute as the remaining pirates lost their nerve and fled.

And that was only with two swords. Honestly, Zoro was already bored of them.

When they stopped attacking, he turned a blade on them, and chides them, "Just how many of you are charging on one girl?"

"Zoro!" Luffy exclaims. Though he sounds more excited than worried. "Y/n! Thank goodness you guys found me. You have great timing! Get me out of here, quick."

Zoro looks over his shoulder to see that, despite telling her to wait on the dock, Owleyes has followed him up here. Though it must have taken her a little longer to climb the nets hanging off the side of the ship than it had him. She's already kneeling beside Luffy's cage and looking exasperated. Her eyes give the cage a quick look over, and it seems solid, if not also rudimentary.

She sighs and releases the lock. "Well, I'm glad you're not hurt, Captain."

"Nah, 'course not. I'm fine!" Then he adds with urgency. "Just stuck!"

At the shout of his name, the pirates have grown antsy and the ones that had the spark of will in their eyes to attempt a fight suddenly shrank back. Does he mean... Pirate Hunter Zoro? The question raced around the deck. He does have three swords! We're dead! We're dead! Where's Captain, somebody go tell Boss Buggy...!

But Zoro's too irritated to pay any attention to them. He even turns his back to them and addresses Luffy directly.

"You!" He huffs, "Is this your idea of fun, huh? How did you even end up here?"

"Just get me out!" Luffy whined in an obnoxious way. His arms were bound so he couldn't do much more than wiggle.

"We need a key, Captain." Owleye's explains. "This is an iron cage, it's not like we can just break it."

"Then make a key! You know with the thing." Luffy suggested vaguely.

Though Zoro looked at them both like they were idiots, she got a determined look about her and nodded. With a flick her arm split apart into a thousand pages and she flicked through them until she finally tore a piece off. She fiddles with the paper, folding and creasing impossibly fast, until it's turned from a blank sheet into the form of a simple white key as her arm reforms.

For a moment, everyone seems pretty optimistic this might work. The key goes in, surprisingly not crumpling immediately into the iron like Zoro thought it would. But when she twists her hand to turn it, he heard a ripping sound and both she and Luffy suddenly hung their heads. Though she looked more depressed than he did.

"It ripped." She said with a miserable exhale.

Before he could face palm or shout of course that wouldn't work! the muttering of the crowd announces the arrival of a stronger opponent. When he looked over his shoulder, he noticed a tall thin man approaching.

He tried to make himself look wider with a large ornamental coat on, decorated in all kinds of tassels and obnoxious golden epaulettes framing his shoulders and finished with a huge collar. This captain's hat was embezzled with the same clownish jolly roger that decorated this ship's sails and there were two tails of blue fringe on either side. The scent of him just about slaps the whole deck with its pungent citrus and it makes Zoro's nose curl.

So, this must be Captain Buggy. Zoro thinks. Can't say I expected an omega.

He looks like a clown. Not just like a fool, though he might be one of those too. But no, like a literal clown.

His face is pale, made powdery by white makeup and he has a painted-on smile, and even a huge red nose that shines in the mid-day light with a bright glare. But weirdly enough, the nose doesn't look put on at all, or fake. Zoro tilts his head, compelled to ask this man just what tribe he's from. He has heard rumors that there's a whole island of clowns in a different sea, though he's never actually seen one...

But he doesn't get a chance to ask.

"So, so, so. You're the great Pirate Hunter." Captain Buggy begins to juggle a handful of blades between his hands, "You know, if I kill you, I bet my name will become more famous. I've been look looking for a way to raise my bounty."

Zoro was too hungry and too annoyed to deal with these low-lives. "Listen here. If you don't want to die, then just leave me alone." He warned.

But those words did not make the clown back down. In fact, the captain only smiled wider and his fellow clowns cheered him on, laughing even instead of cowering like they had been just a minute ago. As the lean clown man came closer Zoro drew up into another two-sword stance. Yet, the voices around them all clamored, kill him captain!

Zoro didn't wait to strike, the taunts were enough reason to start (and finish) this duel, and fast. Captain Buggy didn't put up much of a fight, and was surprisingly easy to cut in a flurry of blows. Easy. Zoro shakes his head, a fool like the rest of these idiots, though Zoro hadn't expected much.

What was more surprising was when their captain fell to the ground with a thud and cut neatly into several pieces, the cheers did not stop. Zoro sheathed his blades, slightly unnerved by the continued echoing laughter of the onlookers.

Getting Luffy out of that cage and out of here seemed most important now. And when he looked back, the omega was still busy trying to untie him. Her arms turned to paper so that she could slip them through the bars and she looked intently focused on trying to turn her fingers back to flesh so that she could until the ropes that kept him bound. Meanwhile Luffy encouraged her but refused to sit still.

As he approached them, he also addressed the crowd of jeerers, "I don't want to have to hurt you all, alright. Just give us the key and we'll get out here, and the rest of you can get on."

But they didn't answer. In fact, they only seemed to laugh harder.

Zoro's scowl deepened.

"You know..." Luffy finally notices, "they're acting pretty weird."

About to agree with him, Zoro turns to examine Luffy's cage to see if there really isn't any way to just pull it apart when he hears a noise. But by the time he realizes it's the twang of metal slicing through the air, it's too late. The knife strikes his body hard, just a little left of his kidneys where luckily there isn't much more than muscle and flesh. The fact it misses his organs doesn't make it any less painful, as it stabs straight through him.

It hurts so bad his ears ring. The call of Luffy and Owleyes worriedly shouting his name became a dull hum under the rushing of blood in his ears. It's the deafening feeling of pain overriding everything else. He turned, and, through momentarily hazed vision that slowly sharpens as he blinks, watches the man he cut in three rises up off the ground. His severed arm and leg reattaching to the main body with a snap.

This was his fault. Zoro thinks grimly as the pain buzzes.

He'd been too cocky. He already knows their captain wasn't a push over since he'd eaten a devil fruit. He should have been more suspicious of this nebulous captain, though it was difficult to when he was a literal clown man. Angry now, Zoro grabs the detected hand currently holding the knife that's stuck in his side, and throws it back towards the man who it belongs to.

It's a disgusting power, he thinks, as he watches the hand hover in the air and the knife dripping with his blood stains the gloved hand red. Things that are cut, should stay cut.

"You get it now, Mr. Pirate Hunter?" The clown spread his arms wide in a real casual gesture, "I ate the chop-chop fruit, so I'm what you call a sectioned man. Come on over here and cut me up with all three of those swords you got, it doesn't matter, I'll just snap back together again! I'll let you have some fun before I finish you off real flashy like, so don't be shy about it!"

"What a monster!" Luffy exclaims, not at all hiding how impressed he sounds.

Though as a rubber man he really shouldn't sound so surprised.

"The... the... the devil fruits are real?" Red-haired girl gasps.

Zoro doesn't even bother to respond to her. If she hasn't noticed that there are three people possessed by the devil fruit on this deck alone, two of which she's standing right beside, than that's her problem.

As if on cue he hears Owleyes grumble, "Please stop moving, Captain, the knots keep slipping."

Knots. Zoro almost snorts, but Luffy paid no attention to her. Zoro can't be amused for long, as he hears a kind of cooing, snide sound from the other side of the clown ship.

"Oh-ho hooo, still standing?" Captain Buggy's laugh is a sharp cackle, and Zoro stumbles to face him again.

Blood pours between Zoro's fingers as he clutches his side with his right hand, but attempts to ready himself for a skirmish with just one blade in his left. He stands in front of Luffy's cage, determined to guard this bit of deck, even if it's really just him versus an enemy he's ill-suited for and a hundred of his lackeys.

Buggy smiles wide, the clown make-up curling his features into a cartoonish parody of sympathy, "Now, now, it seems I've missed your vitals after all, but that looks like a mighty painful wound to me. In fact, you can barely stand up!" The clown cackles long and loud, "What was that about killing me again?"

At the sound of the goad, Zoro's hand tightened around the grip.

He looked grim, but set into a guarded stance. He was unwilling to move from this position or even acknowledge what the clown had said, lest his voice betray the amount of pain he was in. His wound throbbed, and even shifting his weight was almost so painful he felt faint. He couldn't remember the last time he'd been this injured.

Luffy rocked in the cage, getting closer to the bars and shouted, "Hey you big nosed ass, stabbing from the back is dirty!"

All the playful jeering on the clown's face falls away at mention of his shiny red nose. The crowd of laughing, damn near jolly sounding, pirates go deathly quiet. But more than anything, it's the red-haired girl's short in-haled gasp serves as the loudest warning. She sounds horrified.

Zoro doesn't know her, doesn't know if she'll join them or run off once the way is clear, but she does seem like a cunning sort of woman. The kind that only starts trouble when it suits her. And to know when to start trouble, you have to be keen enough to understand what causes trouble. It seems like insulting, or maybe even just commenting on, Captain Buggy's big red nose is enough to unleash his unspeakable fury.

"Who?" Buggy seethes, "Just who do you think you're calling big nosed?!"

But he didn't give Luffy the chance to answer. His fist had already flown backwards and when he stepped forward as one usually would to throw a knife, his entire hand flew off instead, adding force and weight to the strike. Either Buggy was a crack shot, or his hand was able to guide the blade in the air, as it flew right through the tight space between the cage bars and towards Luffy's head.

"Shit, Luffy!" Zoro bites out a warning.

But as much as he wants to and under normal circumstances could block the knife or at least throw it off path, he can't find the strength to move fast enough. A shine of metal sips through and strikes Luffy with a force so hard the cage lifts off the ground and is thrown back several inches. A terrified squawk sounds out from the other side which could only be Owleyes, and he can only hope that she scrambled out of the way before it clatters back to deck with a creeeaking clash that scuffs the wood.

But when everything stills, Luffy is not on the floor bleeding, at the very least groaning in pain if not dead.

He's grinning! Zoro realizes. Sat up, and grinning around a steel blade which should be stuck deep in his flesh instead caught between his teeth. And when he's sure to have caught Captain Buggy's eye-bugging shock, he grins wider and clenches his jaw. And just like that the knife shatters in half, the pieces clattering to the ground with the tinging sound of metal-striking-metal.

"I swear, that I'm gonna take you down, clown!" Luffy declares.

Momentarily looking shocked, and at a loss for words, Buggy's slack jawed look turns mirthful and he lets out a wheezing ringing peel of laughter, "That- that- that's! Hilarious!" In fact, he can barely speak he's laughing so hard he can barely breathe, "You really think this situation has turned in your favor at all? It's only a matter of time until I kill the three of you, I'm just having fun here!"

Zoro makes a note that it seems like this Captain Buggy character has not counted Owleyes as a part of their party. Maybe that'll be useful later. Or at least, she'll be able to run away from this mess if it gets too hairy.

The clown is laughing so hard that it looks like he might cry. Tears prick the corners of his eyes noticeably, and the crew has joined in on his laughter, though they don't sound as enthused as they did earlier. They seem wary, watching the Captain and the odd persons daring to stand against him with uncertain stares.

And maybe it's because he really is an idiot, but Luffy is laughing too.

"Hey Zoro!" He snickers, "Run away for a sec!"

Zoro looks back at Luffy like he's gone totally brain dead and says, "What?!"

Red-head girl's head bobs around, "What is wrong with you? Are you totally stupid? Your friend came here to rescue you, and if you can't tell you're totally trapped. If he leaves, what are you going to do?"

What are you going to do? Zoro thinks she should be thinking about herself more than them. It seems in the nature of betas to care about how other people do things. If he wasn't in so much pain he'd roll his eyes.

Luffy, as he's ever inclined to do, ignores her and just smiles. His chin juts just past Zoro's shoulder and he looks in that direction to see that Luffy is staring dead on at the loaded cannon, which is still pointed at them. Then Zoro smirks, finally understanding. Well, pointed at them for now.

The plan is set.

"Aye, aye." He agrees then grits his teeth to bolt towards it.

The beta looks at them, a sound which must be a cross between flabbergasted and horror flies out of her as she sees Zoro actually running away.

Of course, Buggy doesn't simply let him go. Whether he thinks he's trying to run away, or he understands the ploy, it doesn't matter. The best way to stop him is by throwing a few knives and then throwing his hands as well to create a flurry of flying steel.

With a sword in his left hand and another in his mouth, his right hand still keeping his wound as closed as it can, he fends off the thrown knives and clashes for several blows with the wielded blades. The clash is fast, furious, and through it he manages to avoid any more injury.

He heads right towards the cannon that should still be loaded and dangerous, along with a very short fuse. Flinging the last of Buggy's flying hands off his back, Zoro dives under the cannon and heaves with all his might, forcing the barrel to flip over and face towards Buggy, his gang, and the top levels of his ship.

"T-the Buggy Ball!" Buggy immediately understands. "It's still loaded in that!"

"Get me a light!" Zoro shouts towards the red-headed girl.

Though she was just standing there in shock, she's at least fast to act when she snaps to attention. There's a lighter in her hand and once she's next to the cannon, its fuse is re-lit in a flash. Not even a second passes before a huge BOMB-BOOOM makes his head ring and he stumbles back from the cannon, letting the 'Buggy Ball' do an absurd amount of damage to its own ship.

The upper decks seem to implode, then explode. Everything that collapsed in on the hole created by the cannon ball flies out after a moment. Wood boards and splinters, along with all kinds of shattered things and mountains of dust, fall out into the ocean like rain. The deck is totally obscured by the wreckage.

Just as he gets back to check on Luffy, he hears a familiar voice.

"Finally!" Owleyes exhales with a puff. "Whoever tied these ropes, sure did it tight!"

Red-haired girl says nothing, but a flash of guilt makes her frown.

"Thanks (y/n), that feels great!" Luffy smiles and starts to rub his arms and shake the stiffness off his limbs. "That was awesome, Zoro! You suplexed a cannon, I thought you'd just kick it!"

Before Zoro can say anything to that, the red-head girl bobs her head and goes pink as her shirt, pointing a shaking finger towards Owleyes, who leans across the top of the cage.

"W-when did you get here?" She accuses with a confused squeak.

With one owlish blink sent her way, the omega just deadpan explains, "I've been here all the while."

Her short hair bobbing around as she recoiled slightly, Zoro didn't need to hear the red-head speak to read that expression easy as a wanted poster. And it said creeeepy. Even though the omega in question looks nothing close to bothered, her eyes ticking to Zoro to ask what they should do now that they've gained cover, Zoro's bothered for her.

Still clutching at his stomach, he bites out, "And who the hell are you anyway?"

"I'm a thief!" The red-head snaps back.

But Luffy talks over her, grinning as he stretches, "That's a navigator! And she's going to be our beta! She's awesome, right?"

Sometimes when Luffy says things, Zoro really wonders if he understands what they mean. Our beta? That was pack talk, and at the moment, they didn't even really have a crew let alone a pack. Zoro'd signed up to be on a pirate's ship, not in some big family. But Luffy just smiled, that wide, compelling sort of smile which made Zoro wonder what on earth he could mean.

At his declaration, the beta fumes. Stomping her foot in a way Zoro's only heard that girls do sometimes and never actually seen himself.

"What are you, a total airhead! I'm not your beta. I'm not anyone's beta! And I'm not working for your crew as a navigator! Just so you realize something, your arms might be free, but you're still stuck in that cage!! Instead of thinking about me, why don't you try and get yourself out of there, huh!?"

"That's a good idea!" Luffy completely and eagerly agrees.

Whatever noisiness she planned on spouting next gets caught in her throat and she just lets out a huffed miffed sound. Zoro can't help but laugh, though when he does, he notices the hack of blood that ends up on his hand. He feels eyes boring into him, but he just rubs his palm off on his pants. The confusion around them is dying down as the clown crew begins to get the situation with their ship under control, and it's time to get out of here.

"Nah, don't worry about it yet." He buts in. "We can figure it out later."

Stealing himself for what he's about to do, he's moving before anyone can argue with him. One hand wrapped around a few of the bars and his knees braced he heaves the huge cage up onto his back. It's not easy. He grunts, almost falters forward, but catches himself just in time. With teeth gritted hard, he quickly comes to terms with the fact that—if they survive today—he's going to need more strength training...

"Hey, hey!" Luffy complains as he's thrown into the cage wall, "Your stomach's going to pop out!"

"If it wants to, then let it." Zoro grunts.

"Wait, wait!" Thief girl was not convinced, "You really shouldn't—"

"I said, don't butt in!" He would take no one's complaints.

Lifting this damn thing was hard enough without talking. Though he couldn't help but catch the shocked, slightly awed honestly, and very appreciative look that flashed across (y/n)'s face as he lifted the cage and hopped off the boat before Buggy and his crew could corner them up here. He couldn't meet that look though, and before he lost his momentum he bolted off, running off the deck and making way to the dock below without even looking over his shoulder to see who followed.

He doesn't bother with dropping down from the boat to the dock, instead leaping the gap to a nearby building roof and running along the roof tops until he can't take it anymore. With a thump Luffy's cage rattles against the wood of a lodge style roof which audibly strains under the weight of them but doesn't collapse.

Sure that they won't fall through, Zoro huffs and leans against the jutted out window where they can't be seen from the street.

While they aren't far enough from the sea to be called "safe" they are several blocks away. He can clearly hear the noise of a ruckus behind them at the boat, as the crew dealt with the shock of seeing the prisoners have disappeared—cage and all.

He takes their squabbling to mean that neither of the girls were caught. Thankfully, they all also sound like idiots, he thinks as well. Listening to their call tags and updates shouted across the streets is equivalent to overhearing a bunch of pups playing hide-and-seek. But even still, they are still searching, and they won't stay hidden here for long.

His hand shoots to the hilt of his swords when the sound of panting and foot fall comes closer. Peering around the edge of the window outcrop he's hiding behind he watches the alley below carefully. Tensing as he hears the noise come closer. It sounds like one person, easier to silence, he thinks before he catches sight of the approaching figure and relaxes.

"Mr. Roronoa? Captain Luffy?" Owleyes cups her hand over her mouth, so her whisper yell carries further, though she's clearly out of breath. She stops and looks around, muttering to herself that, "I swear they came this way...?"

"Hey!" He whisper yells back to her.

But instead of catching her attention, Luffy is dragged away from gnawing at the iron encasing him and he lifts his head.

"What is it?" He looks around where Zoro is staring and smiles. Taking in a big lung full of air, he starts to shout, "OI! (Y/N)! UP—"

But Zoro shoves his hand between the bars and lays it over Luffy's mouth to get him to shut up. Shh! he manages to hiss before his yelling attracts the whole fleet of assholes waiting to execute them. But his shout is enough to get (y/n)'s attention and she peers up at the roof. Zoro looks over to see her shoulder slump with relief and she smiles, just a little. Waving his hand, he beckons her closer as he scoots to the edge of the roof.

"Give me your hand and I'll pull you up." He says.

But she shakes her head, "Mr. Roronoa, you're gravely injured, don't strain yourself anymore. I can get myself up." She assures him.

Like you weigh anything at all, he thinks to himself as she disappeared from view. But he sits back despite himself. He doesn't need the reminder that his bodily fluids are rapidly escaping him, the release of blood having only slowed because there's less to squeeze out. Though with every breath he takes he feels more seep out into his clothes.

Just as he wonders how she plans on getting up here—she isn't very athletic after all—he hears a strange noise. It's a dragging, scratching sound. Bending around so he can see the other side of the roof obstructed by Luffy's cage, he sees a familiar hand crawling across the roof like a spider. From the wrist an accordion like fold of paper trails behind and off the roof, towards a dark alley on away from the main street. The fingers walk forward until they grasp a bar of the cage, and once their securely wrapped around the accordion begins to shrink.

He looks up when a flutter of a paper body lifts into the air and up towards the last part of her still flesh. And once she's gotten up there, she turns from flat to round and drops like a stone to the roof. She huffs once, looking a little disoriented and then sits up to look around at them.

"Well..." she finally says, "This is a sticky situation."

"Yeah." Luffy agrees with a casual sigh.

Zoro adds in, "But what's started has to be finished."

"True." Luffy than turns to Owleyes, "Anyway, where's our navigator?"

"She ran off, Captain, I don't know where."

"Too bad." Luffy just shrugs, "Well, she'll be back."

In the distance, there's a sound of more upset yelling. Buggy's voice carries well, when he booms out orders it's easy to tell where the rest of the clowns are headed. He sounds pissed though, and increasingly so. From the insults he's throwing about them it's hard to tell if he's mad they got away because they're mostly a bunch of no names, or if he was blaming his crew more than anything else.

It was clear enough that the pirates would soon be looking for them in full force. The parties gathering to start searching street by street were already being formed, and they weren't far enough away yet to be undiscoverable. Zoro bounced his leg to keep himself ready to move at any time, though the pain was unspeakable.

"Is there any way out of there?" Owleye's asked Luffy, "Can you squeeze through the bars at all?"

He shakes his head. "If I could squish myself, yeah, but I'm made a rubber, I'll only get more stuck. See, I can stretch, but I can't be squashed. I always bounce back." He demonstrates by placing his hands on either side of his head and pushing in until his head visibly gets longer and thinner, but the moment he stops applying pressure he springs back to the right shape. "See?"

The omega crosses her arms and nods, "How inconvenient that is. Though being able to stretch without fear of tearing must be very nice."

"But if I could stay flat, I'd slip out of here in an instant!" Luffy complains.

They both nod together knowingly, without a whisper of a plan brewing between them. It irks him enough to make his eye twitch.

Just who exactly did he pledge to travel the seas with again?

"Aright, even if you can't get out, we need to get moving again." Zoro interrupts their wise-men nodding session. "We're too close to the docks here."

She nodded, more seriously this time than stood up. With a hand over her eyes, she surveyed the area. She chewed her lip and said, "Well, I don't think they're searching very far from the dock yet. They've greatly underestimated how far you could carry that cage, Mr. Roronoa."

"Let them underestimate me some more than." He mutters, and gets to his feet.

"Just a moment, Mr. Roronoa." Owleyes puffs up. "Please allow me to bandage up your wounds or something. You can't keep on like this—"

"No time." He repeats.

And though it takes digging out a fortitude he didn't know he had deep in his gut to do it again, he grabs the cage and lugs it back up onto his back. He starts moving, though all he can do is mindlessly walk. He's following Loo now as the ability to think slips every few seconds. Sometimes it's just his nose that tells him to keep walking forward. They just need to get further away from Buggy, he doesn't care quite how they do that, or where they end up, as long as it gets done. 

X...X...X

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"My house!" Chief man's voice calls out from a little bit away.

"Hey, Zoro was in there!" Luffy adds.

"That alpha with the waist band?!" Chief sounds just about as aghast as he did on seeing the state of his wrecked house. "He must be dead!"

"Zoro!" Luffy calls loudly. "Are you still alive!"

He sits up and clutches his head. "Yeah!" He calls back, "Shit way to wake up though!"

"You're alive! Great! Where's (y/n)?"

Now that question makes Zoro snap to attention.

Nami's shrill voice is not a pleasant background noise as he looks around for her, "How did he even survive? That girl is dead for sure!"

Luffy ignores her, "Well?!" He shouts.

"I don't see her!" Zoro reports reluctantly. His initial look around only shows him more dust and rubble. It doesn't help that the cape she wears is the same color brown as the wood used around here to build, but he doesn't see a mite of her, or feel her eyes on him anywhere.

Then something shifts around and a head pops up.

"I'm... I'm here, captain." Her hoarse voice peeps through the chaos along with a few coughs.

He sees her then, just a few feet behind him. Though her hair is a mess and her face looks scuffed up by the blast, she's definitely alive. But her voice isn't loud enough to carry far past him.

"Never mind!" Zoro quickly corrects, "We're both fine!"

Nami looks gob smacked and Luffy's shoulders slump with relief, and though he hadn't noticed at first, he sees that one way or another Luffy has finally gotten out of that cage.

He pops up just as quick though and smiles, "What a relief! Come on over here, guys!"

It takes them both a moment to get to their feet, but they make way and climb over the rubble and get back to Luffy. And when they arrive, Luffy gives them both a big hug, rubbing cheek-to-cheek which (y/n), who giggles.

"I'm just fine, Captain." She assures him and he pulls back.

While the old man is happy enough to see they aren't dead, he's mad. He almost looks miserable in his upset really. And once the group is reunited, he peels out a full chested speech that boldly declares his hatred for people like Buggy, who think they can walk all over the hard work of other people and get away with it. Threatening lives like its nothing, killing and looting. He hates what these pirates have done to his town.

Though Zoro is impressed by the Chief's sudden display of fighting spirit, he doesn't much care about this town or its history. He stretches and tests his body out while the old man talks. Feeling better than he did when he fell asleep, he still feels how limited his range of movement is but he'll have to deal with that. Especially as the old man admits he would lay his life on the line for this place, and Zoro feels that same zeal.

Maybe it was just being near death that snapped his life back into focus. With his innards firmly in place, a quick nap, and a reason to be angry, Zoro felt ready to fight.

As the old man stomps off the face off against Buggy and his crew, Nami gasps.

"The chief..." she mutters, "was crying!"

"Oh really? I couldn't tell." Luffy sounds smug though and turns back to Zoro with a smirk.

"For some reason, this is starting to feel more fun." Zoro admits. "Good to see you out from behind bars."

"Same here," Luffy snickers.

"You guys are totally nuts, aren't you? How can you laugh right now!" Nami throws her hands up, "How can you be so confident!? Nothing about this situation has changed, and that nice old man just ran off and is going to get killed if we don't do anything!"

"Don't worry," Luffy shrugs, "I like the Chief, I won't let him die."

And with his crew standing at his back, Zoro cross-armed to the right and Owleyes looking curiously over his shoulder at his left, Luffy crosses his arms and turns to Nami with his characteristic swagger. "Now listen here, navigator."

Nami looks both flustered and furious as he addresses her.

"Our destination is the Grand line!" He declares to her, "And we need to know how to get to the entrance! You had that old map before, and now Buggy has it, so we're going to have to steal it back. And then whatever else we can from that bastard clown after we beat his ass. Will you help us, and join our crew?"

He reaches out his hand, to shake on the deal.

Nami looks at him for a measured moment, and goes very serious as she brushes away his offer. "I will tell you this plainly—I will never become a pirate. But I can see that you and I have the same goal for now. So, let's just say... we're... cooperating. Alright? Just for now."

Utterly unphased by her half refusal, Luffy nods. "Agreed!"

With that decided, Luffy turns around and begins to follow the Chief down towards the dock, where their enemies await. Though she was now following them, the peppering of Nami's voice leaves that serious tone and turns into the kind of nagging Zoro already associates with the beta.

"I get him going, but what do you think you're doing?" Nami says pointedly to Zoro, "You're still injured. I'm not working with you just to see the both of you get killed."

"I'm fine. It's healed." Zoro shrugs.

"Yeah right." She snaps, "That's not how anything works!"

"My body is fine." He grunts back. "What's worse is the injury to my name if I sit out now, when all I did in the last fight was get hurt." He unties the bandana around his arm and ties it around his head. Already a commotion has begun at the dock and so Zoro gestures that way. "We going?"

Cracking his knuckles, Luffy snickers again. "Yeah, let's go."

"And what are you going to do?" Nami asks pointedly at Owleyes, who only smiles at her, red eyes flickering with amusement.

"Watch." She answers plainly.

Nami looks around at the three of them and throws her hands up in the air, "you all are crazy! Fine, do what you want. But I'm going in for the treasure and don't you forget it!"

"We know." Zoro drawls with a wave over his shoulder.

As a foursome they walk on. And just as they get into proper view of the half-ruined sight of Buggy's boat, they also hear a yell, followed by a strangling kind of sound. The Chief is standing off alone against Buggy and his men, who cackle menacingly and leer over him. He suddenly falls to his knees, a large white thing wrapped around his neck.

Luffy shot on ahead, and in a moment, he was holding the old man up by the back of his armor and ripping the detached hand off the guy's neck. Then he hurls it hard, back towards its owner, whose jeering grin falls to a frown.

"I kept my promise!" Luffy shouts towards Buggy, "I'm here to beat your ass!"

"Soooo, you've decided to show your face on your own. Saves me the trouble of hunting you morons down." Captain Buggy adjusts his glove as his hand reattaches itself, "You guys will be dead soon any moment now."

"I... I won't let you... hurt this town... anymore!" The Chief says as he struggles back up to his feet. Buggy does not look even a slight bit amused by the old man and his posturing. But it's Nami that gasps out in horror as Luffy quickly decks the old man, and he falls to the ground with no more resistance.

"Hey!" Nami shouts. "What the hell did you do that for, he helped you!"

" 'Cause he was about to get in the way." Luffy explains blithely.

It must be his tone that riles Nami up so much, but Zoro cuts in before she can speak.

"You heard him. It's safer for that old man to stay down if he's going to go around acting recklessly." Zoro actually explains. Then raises an eyebrow her way, "Or do you want him to die?"

"No! But stop doing unnecessary things like that, you could have just asked him."

"He was determined, Ms. Nami. Words would not have stopped him." At (y/n)'s words Nami just looks miffed and crosses her arms.

"Hey, you big red nosed monster!" Luffy yells out, "I said fight me!"

It's childish how quickly those simple words enrage Buggy. But enrage him, they do. For a man with such a distinctive nose, he was surprisingly sensitive about it. Even without being immediately ordered, the crew is rushing around. They know the consequence of uttering that kind of insult.

"FIRE!" Buggy commands.

The Buggy Ball Special is already at the ready. Nami is already making a run for it. Zoro isn't keen on meeting Buggy's special for the third time, but he knows better than to waste the energy dodging, there's no way to outrun a cannon like that. It would blast everything in a forty foot range. Owleyes looks nervous, but with Luffy not even flinching and Zoro only shifting into a defensive stance, she stays where she is.

She does ask though, "Are you going to dodge it, Captain?"

Luffy barks a laugh, and with a smirk so wide, Zoro can hear it in his voice, Luffy says, "Do you think I'd move an inch, just for a cannon ball?"

And though Zoro has sworn to trust Luffy with his life while they both pursue their dreams, who in their right mind would expect that as the cannon flies towards them, Luffy would inhale a huge breath. And that, this breath would make his whole body swell up like a rubber balloon he announces it as which would allow him to catch the cannon ball with his body. His belly takes most of the force, and his feet hardly even scoot back.

When he'd stood his ground, Zoro had no idea how they were about to live through the next moments. Bullets were one thing, but to deflect an entire cannon ball was another level of crazy that Zoro had not been prepared for.

"Could've said something sooner!" He says as the cannon rebounds off his belly and flies back to sender.

Luffy just laughs.

Quietly, Zoro adds another kind of training to his growing list. Get used to the unexpected.

Luffy looks satisfied with the resulting damage. Most of the enemy fodder bodies have been put out of commission, instantly cutting down how bloated this fight could be. As the dust settles it becomes clear that only three people remain standing. Buggy, clearly, and two men who must be his fleet commanders on either side of him. One is a tall peering man in a black coat and a checkered scarf, his hair pulled up into a high pony tail and bangs flopped over one eye, and the other a rosy pink colored bear man.

Nami stomped her foot, seeming at her wits end. "You people are so weird! All of you! It's not possible for a person to do that, it just isn't!"

"It's my rubber balloon!" Luffy repeats, as if that explained everything.

"You are a monster!" She accused.

But Luffy just laughed at her again, "Kinda!"

And no matter how strange Luffy's power appeared to be, it was clear who the real monsters were here. As the reason why the remaining members of Buggy's crew remained so clean and uninjured was that they'd used their subordinates as human shields to take the blast's impact.

They dropped them off to the side will little care, and did not look amused.

Buggy's voice traveled the distance between them with the weight of a heavy threat. "You're all awful comfortable down there, chattin' like you're not scared."

"I'm curious, Captain, to how much more of this we're expected to take." The checkered scarfed man says. He'd used a huge lion to shield himself and he tosses the beasts body away like it disgusts him, "This is the single biggest humiliation we've received under our flag."

The head clown nods. "I'm so mad, words fail me."

But the third guy doesn't seem to agree with his fellow officers, over what they should be angry about. The bear man is pissed. The tall acrobatic commander had used his pet lion as a meat shield instead of a crew mate, rendering it to a state of charred incapacitation.

Furious, the bear man tries to start a fight with the checkered scarfed one. But whatever he does upsets the Captain and Buggy sends him flying instead. That is, flying off the boat deck and towards Luffy. Though by the way he limply flung through the air, it was because he'd been punched, not because he was looking to fight.

Though as he got closer, he tried to save face, demanding a duel with Luffy once he got back on his feet. But the bear man never made it to his feet. When he was near enough, Luffy sent the weirdo away with a well-timed kick to the face, and his body shot to the right and right through the walls of several buildings. A groan peeled out from that general direction, but no one struggled out from the rubble.

Well, Zoro thought, that's one down.

"So, the fight has begun!"

To answer Luffy's battle cry, the checkered scarfed man comes down to meet them. He runs at first, then grabs something from his back and hops on. It's a unicycle, Zoro quickly realizes, and once on it the man gains speed and a strange bouncing momentum. But Zoro needs no more invitation to a fight than the glint of sunlight on a drawn longsword.

He steps in, between Luffy and the approaching enemy.

"If it's swords, I'm all in." He claims dibs over this duel.

Now in striking distance, the man on the unicycle pauses, but never stops bouncing around. And he says, "It's an honor, Roronoa Zoro. As a swordsman of the East Blue, I know what it means to slay you."

"Then you should know exactly how this battle is really going to play out." Zoro shots back. "And it doesn't end with me on my back."

Though he tries to sound tough, it's more difficult to bite those words out than it should be. Owleyes tried her hardest, but he's still wounded, and it hurts to even try and draw his swords. Though she says nothing, he can feel her red eyes on his back, watching carefully, just like she said she would.

It's Luffy that looks concerned and says, "Look Zoro, I can take care of this. You go rest."

"Don't under estimate me." Zoro demands, standing straighter.

Taking a step back towards Owleyes, Luffy raises his hands up and lets the battle go on.

The moment Luffy's out of the way, checkered scarf man bolts forward on his unicycle, but instead of fighting sword to sword, he blows out a burst of fire from his mouth. Zoro bends back to avoid the main gust of flame, swords drawn and ready to block the oncoming attack obstructed by the fire. But it's not a blade that swings through the air after the distraction, but a foot.

There's no time to close his guard and the man's pointed shoe slams down into his wounded left side. Zoro is forced down to his knees and lets out a painful series of coughs.

"You dirty bastard!" Nami yells.

The acrobat shrugs, "This is a pirate fight little lady, not like I kicked him that hard."

To drive the point home, he launches forward again, lifting one foot off the pedal of his cycle to slam Zoro back down the ground, this time aiming for the area on his back where he knows Buggy's knife struck through.

Zoro curses loudly as he touches his forehead to the ground and suffers through the agony. It's tremendously low to keep attacking him like this... but he's the one that took on this duel, knowing full well the state of his own body.

"Pathetic." Unicycle man spits, "A grown man—an alpha—groveling on the floor and crying in pain during a fight. Omegas have more zeal. You made a mistake, Pirate Hunter. Your friend might have the power to tear our organization apart, but you're not ready to make the Buggy Pirate Fleet your enemy."

Zoro grits his teeth at those words.

He can feel it. The weight of expectation on him at this moment. Luffy wouldn't have taken this fight if he'd been allowed to step in, but now it was his duty to prove himself. Luffy wasn't the kind to interrupt a fight for honor, and that's what this was. And for all her complaining, he can see how worried and upset Nami is watching, one hand clutched at her chest.

And the last pair of eyes are the most expectant of them all.

...

"So THAT'S your dream?" Luffy asked, finally comprehending. He laughed until his stomach rumbled and then added, "I thought what you said at the bar was weird. But that's even weirder now that I actually get it."

"I want to witness greatness." this should-be nameless omega says again, just as seriously as the first time. "The highs, the lows. If even being nearby brings death, I accept it. Because as it is, I'm going to spend my life in the background anyway, so I want to be standing behind the best, Captain Luffy. That's my dream."

...

He grits his teeth. He said he was going to be the best.

It was time to damn well prove he meant it.

"It's time for the great Roronoa Zoro to go to the next world. Better luck next time, young man." The checker scarfed man says, then circles around, ready for another strike. "But cocky alphas get what they deserve!"

Three times with the same trick? Even if this fool really thought that Zoro was done for, he was certainly pushing his luck now. It's true that the extra mobility offered by the unicycle had made blocking initially more difficult than Zoro had anticipated, but now he understood.

Taking a moment to gather his own guts and push past his weakness, Zoro waited for the unicyclist to approach again, keeping his body low to the ground purposefully.

At the last moment, he ducks under the foot extended and draws a sword, letting the finely sharpened blade of his oldest, most beloved sword to slice through the rubber of the tire. Instantly the rider wobbles and is thrown off, and the ruined cycle falls to the ground with a clatter.

"You know, you're a pretty annoying guy." Zoro says as he gets to his feet, "Did you find picking at my wound that much fun, huh? Did it make you feel like you're better than me?"

From the place he was laid out on the ground from crashing, the acrobat has a difficult time getting to his feet, looking up at Zoro with a distinct surprise. That's the look Zoro sees behind his eyes, before he banishes all thoughts and closes them. Though after what he does next, that is not the only look of surprise around.

The sword in his left-hand flips around with practiced ease, from a forward to backhanded grip. And then he stabs himself, easily doubling the damage of the knife wound inflicted earlier and destroying the work done to knit him back together. Fresh blood rushes forth and a surge of mind-sharpening adrenaline makes everything feel so clear.

Done, Zoro looks down at his opponent to see him obviously disturbed by the sight in front of him.

"My goal..." He proclaims, pointing his blood-stained sword at his opponent, "is to become the world's greatest swordsman."

"What in the hell are you talking about—??"

But Zoro just spoke over him.

"Is my condition now satisfying to you? Because I'm about to teach you the difference between us."

Worry on the sidelines has melted into amazement. Or at least Luffy's has, if his cheering means anything. And Zoro was about 95% certain that Luffy was physically incapable of lying or hiding his intentions.

Looking worried, the unicyclist grumbles, "You're an impudent fool. But you've got determination, I'll give you that."

"Stop talking shit. I just won't lose to anyone calling himself a swordsman. And if I can't beat a no name like you here, then my fate is obvious anyway."

That makes the acrobat squint his eyes.

"If you're going to be an asshole, then let's finish this fast. I'll show you my best trick. None have seen this and lived. It's my Hundred Top Typhoon Showcase!"

Instead of coming at him, blade for blade, man to man, alpha to alpha, a swath of devices spun out from under the sleeves and cape of the man's coat and sprung forth into the air. Each is equipped with a blade that glints in the light of the sun, high above them. Using them as a diversion device, the acrobat runs off towards the still intact buildings to the right, and begins to run along the wall, eventually building up the momentum to jump high into the air just above him.

Already readied, Zoro nearly rolled his eyes.

"Acrobats: Direct slice!" He calls out.

Zoro's already deflected a variety of tops shooting out from all directions, and is ready to toss off the checker scarfed man who has finally drawn his own sword. That is until he hears a voice, and sees a white thing, flinging through the air towards him.

And it's not a top.

"I'll grab him and you finish this bastard off, Cabaji!" Buggy yells.

"Thanks Boss!"

That fucker! Zoro curses.

But before the threat can become a realized issue, a tanned foot flies through the air and Luffy stomps Buggy's hand to the ground. Buggy shouts out in pain, clutching the air around his dis-embodied hand as Luffy digs his heel into the pavers.

"Don't interfere with Zoro's fight!"

And when Luffy demands that, it sounds like a threat.

Buggy shouts something incompressible back, but Zoro doesn't spare the brain power to keep up with their conversation, instead putting his attention back on the man with the sword in hand, who was still plummeting towards him. In the end, he dodges, rolling out of the way of the swing at the last moment, and gritting his teeth from the pain, he rises back to feet.

Zoro takes a few gasping breaths and "You should just stop now... I'm tired."

"Hahahaha—must be the anemia!" The guy can't seem to hold back his mirth, "I imagine it's taking quite the effort just to stay standing. If you'd like to blame your loss on those wounds, I'll accept your withdrawal now..."

Instead of bothering to answer his blathering, Zoro launched forward, kicking this absolute idiot in the shin so hard he instantly took a knee. Though he wasn't so foolish as to stay in range any longer than a moment, skittering away backwards like a crab.

He didn't bother to waste the breath on explaining himself. The acrobat got back to his feet, and Zoro shifted his own deciding to finish this here and now. The form came to his mind with the spirit of a tiger and he drew his third blade and set the grip between his teeth. Determination pumped life back into his exhausted limbs and the world simmers down to slow motion.

What happened in a brief moment was perfectly paced within his own mind. A slight glide left, the blade in his mouth catches the acrobat's attempt at striking him, and it bounces off, throwing the man's balance off. And in a cross-motion propelling Zoro's body rightward, two even cuts slice deep into the black coat, which disguises the immediate rush of blood which gushes from the fresh wounds.

This all happens before checkered scarf can even react, and once he feels what's been done to him, he gasps. And an instant later he falls face first to the ground.

"The shame... I lost to a..." Cabaji coughs several times, "bunch of common thieves..."

"Not a thief." Zoro grunts, "I'm a fucking pirate."

He rips off his bandana, the will to fight leaking out of him at the same sappy speed of what remained of his own congealing blood. He lets out a long exhale and lets himself sit down slowly, suddenly very tired. Behind him, small steps sound like they come closer, but it doesn't bring any sense of fear. Especially not when he sees a pair of pale yellow flats and a rather shapely pair of legs come into view.

"Luffy." he manages to say as he lays back down and closes his eyes, "I'm going to catch a few."

"Go on and sleep. I'll finish this off, no problem. Aye (y/n), make sure he doesn't bleed out, but don't forget to watch me too!" He says with a confident laugh.

Zoro almost laughed too. Show off.

"Will do, Captain."

"Do what you want, Owleyes." He mutters, and already half out of it, not even hearing her response before he's out.

X...X...X

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